


Red

by kaynibbler16



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-29
Updated: 2014-09-29
Packaged: 2018-02-19 04:51:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2375243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaynibbler16/pseuds/kaynibbler16
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There were legends about this forest, but how much truth was there to the stories?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Red

**Author's Note:**

> This story is un-betaed, so any and all mistakes are my own.  
> Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of its characters.

The whisper of leaves rustling in the wind was the only sound he could hear as he walked through the wood. All animal sounds were silent this night. He realized he probably should have heeded the villagers warnings about this forest, but his pride would not allow him to turn back. He would not allow some old legend to frighten him just because the villagers were a superstitious lot. No, he had important business to attend to in another part of the kingdom and he wanted to get it over with as soon as possible.

A wife. That was his business. Find a wife and settle down, were his father’s dying wishes. Or, at least they would have been had his father not been just pretending to be ill in order to get his son to finally marry. The old man was the devious sort; tricking his only son into an unwanted marriage with one of his business associate’s daughters. But what else did he expect from his father, anyway? The man even claimed it would be faster on foot if he took the shortcut through this forest instead of taking a carriage around it.

Winding his way even further into the trees, his path illuminated by only the full moon shining through the leaves, he understood why it would have been difficult to navigate a horse through these woods. The path twisted and turned and it was too narrow for a horse to pass through safely. However, it didn’t bother him too much. He liked walking and it was a beautiful night for it, although it was rather warm for that time of year so he let his burgundy cloak hang loosely behind his shoulders.

The snap of a branch made his freeze, heart lodged in his throat.

Wolves, the villagers had warned him. They owned the night in these woods. Travelers were warned to stay away from the forest even during daytime. Large, monstrous wolves claimed these trees as their own.

Or, at least that’s the legend. According to the stories, the wolves themselves had once been a great people, but they had angered a great and powerful warlock who cursed them to be human by day but ferocious man-eating wolves by night. And the full moon was when they were at their most dangerous.

Leaves rustled off to the left of him and he knew it was not the wind this time. Whirling around, he stared into the darkened trees for any sign of movement. “I haven’t any money or valuables for you to steal, so you’re wasting your time!” he shouted.

There was a faint chuckle. “I have no interest in your baubles or coins. Although, I am curious as to why you walking through my woods at night, especially during a full moon.”

It was a woman’s voice.

“Your woods?”

“Yes, my woods. I live here so these are my forests.”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “Just because you live here doesn’t make these lands yours.”

“Yes, it does. No one dares to walk through here anymore, at least until you. These lands have belonged to me for a long time.” Her tone was slightly perturbed by his accusation. “Why are you walking through here anyway?”

He raised his eyebrows at her question. “To get to the other side, obviously. This is the shortest path to the other side of the kingdom. Walking around this forest would add about four more days onto my journey and I don’t wish to waste my time.”

He heard her snort. “So you would risk your life instead of wasting your time? You are a strange person.”

“Says the woman living in these woods alone.”

“I am not alone,” she said, ominously.

His blood chilled at her words, but he didn’t let it show on his face. “Okay, so you have a few friends with you. Either way, if you don’t wish to rob me then allow me to finish my journey and I’ll be out of your way.”

He still couldn’t see her, but he could sense that she was smiling by what she said next. “You wandered into a wolf’s den and expect safe passage out?”

Finally, the woman stepped out of the trees and into the moonlight.

He certainly wasn’t expecting her to be so breathtakingly beautiful. Her hair was wild and fell halfway over her face, but did not conceal her golden eyes. They were hauntingly beautiful in the moonlight, almost hypnotic as she gazed at him. He found he could not look away.

“These are my woods and yet you stroll through them without a care for what might happen. I can’t decide if you are foolish or incredibly brave,” she said, drawing even closer to him.

“A little bit of both,” he murmured, his voice rumbling low in his throat.

She smiled and it was almost feral. “Yes, I imagine you are. So, traveler, I ask again, why are you in my woods?”

“To find a wife.” She was now within arm’s reach.

“A wife?” Her eyes widened in surprise. “You are traveling through my woods to find a wife?”

“Yes, I mean, no, I mean,” he sputtered, unable to stop his nervous babbling.

“It’s a simple question, traveler. Yes or no?” She was standing so close that he could feel the warmth of her breath on his neck, like a wolf coming in for the kill.

He swallowed. “I have to meet a potential bride in another village on the other side of this forest.”

“Oh? And you wish to meet her so badly that you’d risk life and death?”

Her body was a hairs breath away from him and he could see that her dress, a tattered thing that clung seductively to her curves, could barely be considered such because of the sheerness of the cloth. He could barely think straight as she closed the gap between them and pressed herself flush to his body, rising up on her toes a bit in an attempt to compensate for their height difference.

“Well?” she whispered in his ear. “Does she mean so much to you?”

“No,” he murmured back. “Not as such. My…my father wishes for it. For me to marry.”

“Hmm, and you will marry this girl to please him?”

“Yes. I must.”

At his words, she drew away and he couldn’t help a faint whimper at the loss.

“I see. So, you wish to please your father with this marriage?” She stepped back even further. “Is that what you truly want?”

He spoke without thinking. “No.”

“No?” Her smile grew wider. “Then what do you want?”

“I want…” For a moment, he stopped. A blush was creeping up his neck as he realized that this woman was able to get him to reveal his secret thoughts. “I want…love.”

It was embarrassingly easy to admit, too. He wanted someone to love and cherish, someone he chose for himself. Yet, his father desired a marriage with good connections.

“Love. And do you think you could love this woman?” She stepped closer again, her eyes drawing him in.

“I…I don’t know,” he answered honestly. “I don’t even know her.”

“You wish for love, but this woman may not be what you are looking for. If you go, you must marry her, but if you don’t then what will you do?”

“I…” He didn’t know how to answer her. What would he do? If he was honest with himself, he didn’t want to meet this woman at all. He should meet her, but the more he thought about it the less he wished to finish his journey. What was waiting for him there? A marriage that his father arranged to a stranger just to better his business connections among the social elite? No, he wanted something more. He would spend the rest of his life entertaining people that had no real interest in him besides what he could offer them.

No. He couldn’t do it.

He wouldn’t be just a tool for his father to use.

“I want…”

“What do you want?”

“I want…freedom.”

Her tongue poked out between teeth as her smile widened. “I can offer you freedom.”

Lifting her hands, she grasped the front of his loose shirt and gently tugged him close, her lips barely brushing his own. “I can offer you love.”

His breath caught and he only waited a moment before leaning closer and pressing his lips to hers. She pressed herself against him, moaning softly as she tilted her head for a better angle. Her tongue teased the seam of his lips and he opened them willingly to her. For a long while the only sounds in the air were the two of them tasting each other for the first time. All too soon, they were forced to break for air. He couldn’t help the surge of male pride at her swollen lips and heavy panting, knowing that he was the reason for them. He smirked. “Is that so?”

Raising her arms, she clasped her hands loosely behind his neck and tugged him down towards her. “Yes, and so much more.”

He pulled her close and nuzzled her neck. “Why me?”

She pulled away slightly and stroked his face. “You and I are not so different. Freedom…love. Someone to hold at night.”

“But specifically, why me? We just met.”

For only a moment, her expression seemed unsure. “Something about you…you have a wolf’s heart.”

“Wolves…those legends aren’t real.”

She grinned mysteriously. “Most legends have a grain of truth to them.”

“Are you saying that you’re a wolf?”

“Do I look like one?”

He shook his head. “No, you look wild. More like a wood nymph than a wolf.”

“These are my woods.” Caressing his neck with her lips, she nibbled at his pulse point. “You are in my woods.”

“Does that make me yours, then?”

“Would it upset you if it did?”

“No.”

“Well then, I guess you are mine.”

It was true. He couldn’t explain it, but it was the absolute truth. “Are you a witch?”

She chuckled. “Hardly, why?”

“I feel…spellbound.”

“I am not a witch.”

“Then maybe you are exactly what I’ve been searching for,” he whispered as he gazed into her warm eyes. “What beautiful eyes you have.”

“You flatter me, traveler.”

“What soft lips you have.”

She pressed a chaste kiss to his lips before pulling away and grasping his hand. “Come with me?”

Staring down at their linked hands, he said, “What lovely hands you have.”

She smiled, squeezing his hand gently. “Let me have you.” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“What an enchanting voice you have.”

No more words passed between them as she led him into the darkened forest, away from the safety of the moonlit path. They disappeared into the trees until even the man’s dark red cloak vanished among the leaves.


End file.
